Course Planning & Upcoming Offerings

ANTH-2119 (3) Medical Anthropology Medical anthropology is a subfield of anthropology. It informs our understandings of the experiences and distribution of health, the prevention and the treatment of the sick in different cultural groups and the role of pluralistic medical systems. Critical health disparities between marginalized populations in developed countries as well as between developing and developed countries are increasingly prevalent and complex in nature. This course looks at ethnomedicine, disease ecology and Indigenous perspectives on health and illness. Cross-listed: BANT-2119.

ANTH-2222 (3) Carribbean Archaeology This course introduces students to the archaeology of the insular Caribbean. Students discover the cultural diversity and complexity that characterized the area from the arrival of the first humans to the early contact with Europeans. The course covers different aspects including cultural periodizations, migratory routes, emblematic sites, and the characterization of precolonial and early colonial lifeways of Indigenous people in the Caribbean. Students learn different methods and techniques that have been applied to the study of archaeological materials from the Caribbean and the legacy of Indigenous groups to the socio-cultural development of the region.

ANTH-2224 (3) Ancient Egypt (with T. Greenfield) This course surveys ancient Egypt from early settled life to imperial times. It uses archaeological evidence to reconstruct Egyptian culture across the Dynastic periods, including the Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms, as well as intermediate phases. The course covers themes like kingship, monumental architecture, notable Pharaohs, the pantheon of deities, and beliefs about death and the afterlife. It emphasizes archaeological material culture, describing artifacts and significant sites, and provides a foundation for understanding Egyptian history and culture from its origins to the influence of foreign powers, including the Ptolemies, Hellenistic rulers, and Romans. Cross-listed: CLAS-2911.

ANTH-3210 (3) Archaeological Laboratory Methods This course focuses on processing, analyzing, and interpreting archaeological materials. It examines a range of specialized techniques for studying lithic, ceramic, botanical, and geological evidence recovered at archaeological sites, and for establishing their temporal context. Additional in-depth work is required to receive credit at the 4000 level. Cross-listed: ANTH-4210(3).

ANTH-4100 (3) History of Anthropology (with E. Thrift) This course examines the development and influence of select schools of anthropological thought and practice from the nineteenth century to the present. Emphasis is given to the approach and contribution of individual scholars, and to the impact of institutions and historically significant events and trends in shaping disciplinary ideas.

ANTH-3207 (3) Zooarchaeology (with T. Greenfield) This course introduces analytical and theoretical aspects of zooarchaeology through lectures and laboratory exercises focusing on the comparative skeletal anatomy of various mammal, bird, fish, amphibian and reptile species. Topics include post-depositional changes to bones, sampling and recovering faunal remains, ageing and sexing of bone, reconstructing past environments and human dietary strategies, evidence of animal domestication, and bone tool technology. Cross-listed: BANT-3207(3).

ANTH-3411 (3) South American Languages (with I. Roksandic) Presenting an integrated overview of the indigenous languages of South America, this course looks at main language families spoken there, their spatial distribution, history and classification, as well as their cultural background. With 53 language families and 55 isolates, South America is not only the most diverse region in linguistic terms, but also a storehouse of unusual structural features important for understanding the full range of possible variants of human language. The course also explores typological characteristics of South American languages, potential linguistic areas, proposals of more distant relationships, and the current situation of endangered languages in this region. Additional in-depth work is required to receive credit at the 4000-level. Cross-listed: ANTH-4411(3), LING-3104(3), LING-4104(3), and IS-3104(3).

ANTH-4307 (3) Advanced Human Osteology (with Y. Chinique de Armas) This course covers analysis and interpretation of human osteological material. Topics include skeletal indicators of demographic, pathological, and nutritional factors, and approaches to the analysis of these types of data. An understanding of basic skeletal identification is assumed. Note: Permission of the Department Chair is required to register. Students registering with a GPA of less than 3.0 in Anthropology require the instructor's signature. Cross-listed: BANT-4307(3).